The Parish of Enniskillen
Saint Macartin’s Cathedral
Dean: Very Rev K R J Hall, M Phil Tel: 6632 2465
Email: krjhall@btinternet.com

     Curate: Rev Dr Edwin James Aiken BSc, MTh, PhD Tel: 079 6849 3922
Email: curate.stmacartins@gmail.com

Staff: Rev Colin Brownsmith FCMA, CGMA, MBA, Prof Cert Min  
Tel: 028 6864 1997
Parish Reader: Mrs Adele Moore

Parish Office Tel: 028 6632 2917  Mon. - Fri. (9.00am - 12.00noon)
Email: stmacartins@btopenworld.com
  Website: www.enniskillencathedral.com
_____________________________________________________________
Sunday 30th March 2025  The Fourth Sunday of Lent: Mothering Sunday

‘As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.’ Isaiah 66:13

9.00am Holy Communion - page 180 (Large print page 106)
11.00am Morning Prayer - page 101 (Large print page 37)

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A loop induction system has been installed in the Church for those people using hearing aids. 
Please turn your hearing aid to position ‘T’ for maximum performance.

St Macartin’s – At the Heart of the Community
Strengthening Commitment, Outreach, Worship and Christian Love

Gathering in God’s Name
Processional Hymn 303

1.
Lord of the Church, we pray for our renewing:
Christ over all, our undivided aim.
Fire of the Spirit, burn for our enduing,
wind of the Spirit, fan the living flame!
We turn to Christ amid our fear and failing,
the will that lacks the courage to be free,
the weary labours, all but unavailing,
to bring us nearer what a church should be.

2.
Lord of the Church, we seek a Father’s blessing,
a true repentance and a faith restored,
a swift obedience and a new possessing,
filled with the Holy Spirit of the Lord!
We turn to Christ from all our restless striving,
unnumbered voices with a single prayer:
the living water for our souls’ reviving,
in Christ to live, and love and serve and care.

3.
Lord of the Church, we long for our uniting,
true to one calling, by one vision stirred;
one cross proclaiming and one creed reciting,
one in the truth of Jesus and his word!
So lead us on; till toil and trouble ended,
one Church triumphant one new song shall sing,
to praise his glory, risen and ascended,
Christ over all, the everlasting King!

Timothy Dudley-Smith (b.1926)

Greeting

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

A Sentence of Scripture

“As a mother comforts a child so will I comfort you, 
says the Lord.”										(Isaiah 66: 13)

Introduction

For many years, the Fourth Sunday in Lent 
has been observed as Mothering Sunday. 
The tradition arose from a sentence in St Paul’s 
Letter to the Galatians, which for many centuries 
was read in the Epistle of this Sunday: 
in it, St Paul writes of “Jerusalem which is above is free, 
which is the mother of us all.”
So, on this day, we give thanks to God 
who gives us New Birth, 
and for the Church which, like a mother, nurtures us 
in the life of the Spirit.
We also give thanks for our own human mothers, 
and for all the qualities of mothering,
given and received in this congregation.
Penitence

Let us call to mind our sin,
our failure to value the love of others 
and our failure to love as Christ has loved us.
Sit or kneel

Your love gives us life.
We fail to live as your children.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

You call us to do good. 
We seek our own good.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

You hear us when we cry for help. 
We ignore the cries of others.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

The Absolution

The Lord is loving and forgiving to all who turn to him; 
tender and compassionate as a mother towards her children.
May the God of love bring you back to himself, 
forgive you your sins, and assure you of his eternal love
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Acclamation
Stand
O Lord, open our lips:
and our mouth will proclaim your praise.

O God, make speed to save us:
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.

Praise the Lord.
The Lord’s name be praised.

The Collect for Mothering Sunday

God of compassion,
whose Son Jesus Christ, the child of Mary,
shared the life of a home in Nazareth,
and on the cross drew the whole human family to himself:
Strengthen us in our daily living
that in joy and in sorrow
we may know the power of your presence
to bind together and to heal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Lent Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, 
you hate nothing that you have made
and forgive the sins of all those who are penitent:
Create and make in us new and contrite hearts
that we, worthily lamenting our sins
and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may receive from you, the God of all mercy,
perfect remission and forgiveness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Ministry of the Word
The Old Testament Reading: Exodus 2: 1-10
Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him for three months. When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him.
The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it. When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. ‘This must be one of the Hebrews’ children,’ she said. Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Yes.’ So the girl went and called the child’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages.’ So the woman took the child and nursed it. When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses, ‘because’, she said, ‘I drew him out of the water.’

This is the Word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

Psalm 34: 11-20

11 Come, my children, and listen to me; ♦
   I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who is there who delights in life ♦
   and longs for days to enjoy good things?
13 Keep your tongue from evil ♦
   and your lips from lying words.
14 Turn from evil, and do good; ♦
   seek peace, and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous ♦
   and his ears are open to their cry.
16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, ♦
   to root out the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry and the Lord hears them ♦
   and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to the broken-hearted ♦
   and will save those who are crushed in spirit.
19 Many are the troubles of the righteous; ♦
   from them all will the Lord deliver them.
20 He keeps all their bones, ♦
   So that not one of them is broken.

The Epistle: 2 Corinthians 1: 3-7
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us, so also our consolation is abundant through Christ. If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation; if we are being consoled, it is for your consolation, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we are also suffering. Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our consolation.

This is the Word of the Lord:  Thanks be to God.

Hymn 92

1.
How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
in a believer's ear!
it soothes our sorrows, heals our wounds,
and drives away our fear.
2.
It makes the wounded spirit whole,
and calms the troubled breast;
'tis manna to the hungry soul,
and to the weary rest.
3.
Dear Name! the rock on which I build,
my shield and hiding-place,
my never-failing treasury, filled with boundless stores of grace.
4.
Jesus, my saviour, shepherd, friend,
my prophet, priest, and king,
my lord, my life, my way, 
my end,
accept the praise I bring.
5.
Weak is the effort of my heart,
and cold my warmest thought;
but when I see thee as thou art,
I'll praise thee as I ought.
6.
Till then I would thy love proclaim
with every fleeting breath;
and may the music of thy Name
refresh my soul in death.

John Newton  (1725-1807)  altd.

The Gospel Reading: Luke 2: 33-35
And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, ‘This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.’

This is the Word of the Lord: Thanks be to God.

The Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Prayers
Led by the young people

Concluding with
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, 
hallowed be thy name, 
thy kingdom come, 
thy will be done, 
on earth as it is in heaven. 
Give us this day our daily bread. 
And forgive us our trespasses 
as we forgive those who trespass against us. 
And lead us not into temptation,  
but deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, 
for ever and ever. Amen.

Hymn 712

1.
Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord:
unnumbered blessings, give my spirit voice;
tender to me the promise of his word;
in God my Saviour shall my heart rejoice.

2.
Tell out, my soul, the greatness of his name:
make known his might, the deeds his arm has done;
his mercy sure, from age to age the same;
his holy name, the Lord, the Mighty One.

3.
Tell out, my soul, the greatness of his might:
powers and dominions lay their glory by;
proud hearts and stubborn wills are put to flight,
the hungry fed, the humble lifted high.
4.
Tell out, my soul, the glories of his word:
firm is his promise, and his mercy sure.
Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord
to children's children and for evermore.

Timothy Dudley-Smith (b.1926)

The Address

The Blessing of the Gifts
Loving God,
thank you for mothers, for grandmothers and godmothers,
and for all the people who care for us, and have cared for us.
May these flowers be a sign of our thanks,
and of the love we all share through you. Amen.

Children are invited to come to the front to distribute the gifts
to all the women in the congregation.
At the end of the distribution of flowers we all say this prayer. 

Thank you God for the love of our mothers:
thank you God for their care and concern;
thank you God for the joys they have shared with us;
thank you God for the pains they have borne for us;
thank you God for all that they give us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Offertory Hymn 543

1.
Lord of the home, your only Son
received a mother’s tender love,
and from an earthly father won
his vision of your home above.

2.
Help us, O Lord, our homes to make
your Holy Spirit’s dwelling place;
our hands’ and hearts’ devotion take
to be the servants of your grace.

3.
May we with joy our homes prepare
that, were our Lord a child once more,
he might be glad our hearth to share,
and find a welcome at our door.
4.
Lord, may your Spirit sanctify
each household duty we fulfil;
may we our Master glorify
in glad obedience to your will.

Albert F. Bayly (1901-84)

The Blessing
May God, who gave birth to all creation, bless you:
may God, who became incarnate by an earthly mother, bless you:
may God, who broods as a mother over her children, bless you.
May almighty God bless you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
now and for ever. Amen.

Exit Processional Hymn 670

1.
Jerusalem the golden,
with milk and honey blessed;
beneath thy contemplation
sink heart and voice oppressed.
I know not, O I know not
what joys await us there,
what radiancy of glory,
what bliss beyond compare,

2.
They stand, those halls of Zion,
all jubilant with song,
and bright with many an angel,
and all the martyr throng;
the Prince is ever in them,
the daylight is serene,
the pastures of the blessèd
are decked in glorious sheen.

3.
There is the throne of David,
and there, from care released,
the shout of them that triumph,
the song of them that feast;
and they who, with their Leader,
have conquered in the fight,
for ever and for ever
are clad in robes of white.
4.
O sweet and blessèd country,
the home of God's elect!
O sweet and blessèd country,
that eager hearts expect!
Jesus, in mercy bring us
to that dear land of rest;
who art, with God the Father,
and Spirit, ever blessed.

ANNOUNCEMENTS for Sunday 30th March

Daily Reading for Lent - Pilgrim Journeys - The Commandments
The Pilgrim Journeys booklets are ideal for anyone to use daily in Lent but can be used at any time of the year. There are 40 daily reflections. Each day offers: A theme for the day; A suggested short Bible reading exploring the theme; An invitation to reflect; A suggestion of how to pray; A prompt to act. These booklets are available for £3.00 at the back of the Cathedral or from the Cathedral Office.
Lenten Project - Mission Focus - Mothers’ Union Overseas Fund
This Lenten Season we, the Parish of Enniskillen, are going to support this vital work. Please take a Lenten Box or a Gift Aid Envelope, available in the Cathedral porch, and return it during Holy Week.
Coffee Morning
Foyle Hospice, invite you to a Coffee Morning on Saturday 29th March between 10.00am and 2.00pm in St Macartin’s Cathedral Hall. Everyone is welcome.
Word and World
The next meeting is on Tuesday 1st April at 7.30pm in the Hilliard Room, Cathedral Hall.
Lenten Lunches
Fermanagh Churches Forum invite you to a Lenten lunch on Wednesday 2nd April, at 12.30pm in St Michael’s Hall. A light lunch is provided followed by reflections. The series continues on 9th April in the Methodist Hall and on 16th April in the Hilliard Room, St Macartin’s Cathedral Hall.
Annual Easter Vestry
Will be held on Monday 7th April at 7.30pm. Anyone is welcome to attend but only those who are registered can vote.
South West Style
Foundation Degree in Travel and Tourism students at South West College Erne Campus will host South West Style, a fashion show celebrating the fashion of the region, at the campus on Thursday 10th April, doors open at 6:30pm. Tickets are £10 and can be booked by emailing southweststyle25@gmail.com. All proceeds will be donated to Marie Curie. There will be a special prize draw on the night.
Mothers’ Union
The next meeting is on Monday 14th April when members will attend church for the Holy Week service at 7.30pm.
Adult Confirmation
A service to confirm adults will take place in the Cathedral on Ascension Thursday (29th May) at 7.30pm.  Adults throughout the Diocese are welcome to be confirmed at this service – please contact the clergy or the Parish Office and a member of the Clergy will contact you.
Mid Week Services
Wednesday 2nd April at 7.30pm – Compline
Thursday 3rd April at 11.00am – Holy Communion
Sunday 6th April - The Fifth Sunday in Lent
9.00am – Holy Communion   
11.00am – Holy Communion